The Gibraltar Neanderthals
and their extinction
❚ J. C. FINLAYSON* ❚ R. N. E. BARTON** ❚ C. B. STRINGER*** ❚
1. Introduction
1998 marked the 150th anniversary of
the discovery of the Gibraltar Neanderthal
skull in Forbes’s Quarry on the north face of
the Rock of Gibraltar (Busk, 1865). The history
of this discovery, and that of the cranial
remains of a Neanderthal child from the
nearby Devil’s Tower Rock Shelter in 1926,
have been summarized recently (Barton et al.,
1999). The Gibraltar Caves Project commenced in 1994 with a reconnaissance and
investigation of Ibex Cave and continued in
subsequent years in Gorham’s and Vanguard
Caves (Stringer et al., 1999, Fig. 1). The purpose of this paper is to summarize the results
of the work in Gorham’s and Vanguard Caves
since 1995 and to place these in the context of
the late Iberian extinction of the Neanderthals
(Vega Toscano et al., 1988; Antunes et al.,
1989; Barroso and Hublin, 1994; Zilhão,
1993, 1995, 1996; Hublin et al., 1995; D’Errico et al., 1998; Raposo and Cardoso, 1998;
Finlayson and Giles Pacheco, 1999; Pettitt,
1999).
– Map of Gibraltar showing location of sites mentioned
in the text: 1 - Forbes’ Quarry; 2 -Devil’s Tower; 3 - Ibex Cave;
4 - Vanguard Cave; 5 - Gorham’s Cave.
FIG. 1
2. Gorham’s Cave
Waechter (1951, 1964) described a well-stratified 16 m sequence of Late Pleistocene
deposits in Gorham’s Cave. The current work in this cave has been concentrated largely on
three exposed stratigraphic units towards the back of the cave (Fig. 2). These cover three main
time zones, Upper Paleolithic with dates spanning 26-30 ka BP, a group containing the
youngest Middle Paleolithic and dated at around 31-32 ka BP, and a third group which covers the main Middle Paleolithic sequence which lies in and under units dated by a new accelerator date on charcoal of 45,3 ± 1,7 ka BP (OxA-6075) and above units dated between 80-100
ka BP by Uranium-series determinations (Barton et al., 1999; Pettitt, 1999; Stringer et al.,
1999). The younger Paleolithic units show great charcoal concentrations that have been identified as combustion zones. These units also contain burnt bone but few diagnostic lithic artifacts, including small backed blade material (Barton, 1999). Context 9, which has been
equated to Layer D1 of the initial excavations at Gorham’s in the 1950s, is one of the richest
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combustion horizons and lies directly on a natural floor of cemented limestone cobbles and
has produced four statistically indistinguishable AMS dates in the time range 28-31 ka BP
(Waechter, 1964; Barton et al., 1999; Stringer et al., 1999). Near the base of the sequence artifacts characteristic of the Middle Paleolithic (discoidal cores and flakes from them) and the
Upper Paleolithic (a platform rejuvenation flake from a prismatic core) have been recovered
but this may represent material of mixed age (Barton, 1999). Below this a Middle Paleolithic industry was recovered associated with a hearth, from which charcoal was dated to ca
32-33 ka (Radiocarbon) BP (Pettitt, 1999). The main Middle Paleolithic deposits show significant evidence of human activity with lithic artifacts and residues of food processing activities that appear to include charred pine seeds (Barton et al., 1999; Stringer et al., 1999) and
cut marked Ibex Capra pyrenaica and Hermann’s Tortoise Testudo hermanni (Barton, 1999;
Fernández-Jalvo, 1999; Currant, pers. comm.). Artifacts from these levels are of Mousterian
tradition and are characterized by the use of discoidal core technology and its variants (Bordes, 1950, 1961; Boëda, 1988, 1993). The raw materials are largely of local origin, from
within the Gibraltar peninsula, although the source of honey-colored, fine-grained, cherts
used in the manufacture of some tools has been identified 17 km north-west of the Rock.
These tools may well have been imported after manufacture (Barton et al., 1999; Stringer et
al., 1999). Also of interest is the presence of very large blade-like flakes in one of the lower
Mousterian levels. These are of a “classic Levallois” blade technology (Mellars, 1996) and,
from their size, are unlikely to have been manufactured from locally obtained sources.
3. Vanguard Cave
This, previously unexcavated, cave has a 17 m deep sequence of deposits that consist
largely of sands interspersed with finely laminated organic-rich silts and clay (Barton,
1999). Each of the identified archaeological levels has been systematically excavated and
sampled for paleoenvironmental and dating purposes (AMS, ESR, OSL and U-Series techniques) and results indicate that, with the exception of the uppermost levels, most of the
units lie beyond the age range of AMS radiocarbon dating (Barton et al., 1999; Stringer et
al., 1999). It appears that the cave filled up to its present level by ca 45 ka BP (Barton et al.,
1999; Stringer et al., 1999). A Mousterian discoidal core technology, comparable with that
at Gorham’s, has been found in a number of separate contexts (Barton, 1999). A welldefined layer of ash and charcoal, which included a concentration of broken and burnt mussel shells with associated quartzite flakes and a number of coprolites, has been excavated
within the upper units of this cave. It represents a short-lived episode. The artifacts are refittable and indicate a limited knapping event. Of particular interest were a chert side scraper
and a heavily utilized chert flake that appear to have been introduced in a ready-made state
given that no evidence of in situ manufacture was found (Barton, 1999; Fernández-Jalvo,
1999; Stringer et al., 1999).
A series of Mousterian occupation horizons with artifacts, bones and hearth material
have been found lower down the cave sequence, separated from the «mussel» level by a thick
intervening deposit of sterile sand. The area excavated includes smashed, cut-marked and
burnt bone (mostly Ibex) around combustion zones that are rich in charcoal and lithic artifacts (Fernández-Jalvo, 1999). The artifacts are of a discoidal core technology and are low
in retouched tools and of locally obtained raw materials (Barton, 1999).
A small alcove on the north side of the chamber has produced well-preserved Spotted
Hyaena, Crocuta crocuta, bones and a small, sub-circular, hearth but no artifacts have been
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found in association. An AMS date on pine, Pinus sp., charcoal from within this feature has
given a date of >44,1 ka BP (OxA-7078; Pettitt, 1999).
4. Environmental Change
Using the data from the Gibraltar caves, supplemented by a regional survey of Middle and Upper Paleolithic sites (Finlayson and Giles Pacheco, 1999) and published studies of other sites in southern Iberia (Carrión, 1992a, 1992b; Carrión et al., 1993; d’Errico
et al., 1998; Raposo and Cardoso, 1998), a start has been made at interpreting the effects
of climate-induced environmental change on the Paleolithic populations of southern
Iberia during Oxygen Isotope Stages (OIS) 4-2 (Finlayson et al., in prep.) and at modeling
the wider context of the evolution of these populations in Iberia (Finlayson, in prep.). Currant (1999), Finlayson and Giles Pacheco (1999) and Finlayson et al. (in prep.) have highlighted the constancy of the species composition of the large mammal community of the
region during the Late Pleistocene and its similarity to the contemporary fauna with the
exception of the loss of several of the larger carnivores, such as the Spotted Hyaena and
the Leopard Panthera pardus, and rare megafaunal species, such as the Narrow-nosed
Rhinoceros Stephanorhinus hemitoechus. The avifauna is similarly that of open woodland
and savanna-like environments to which are added local components associated with
cliffs and wetlands (Finlayson and Giles Pacheco, 1999).
Using a combination of contemporary data obtained across Portugal and southern
Spain and anthracological and osteological data from Gorham’s, Vanguard and Ibex Caves
in Gibraltar, Finlayson et al. (in prep.) have modeled the environments around the Rock of
Gibraltar during OIS 3. Their results indicate that for much of OIS 3 Neanderthals were living around Gibraltar in open wooded savanna environments with a rich grass cover and a
patchy shrub layer. The dominant components of the vegetation were typically thermoMediterranean (Rivas-Martínez, 1981) species, particularly Stone Pine (Pinus pinea), Olive
(Olea europaea) and Lentisc (Pistacia lentiscus). The main conclusion is that throughout
much of OIS 3 the Neanderthals of southern Iberia lived in a situation that, at human generation timescales, must have appeared highly seasonal but inter-annually constant. They
were widely distributed across the landscape (Finlayson and Giles Pacheco, 1999) and
occupied open-air and cave sites. They exploited seasonal food resources and were omnivorous, consuming plant matter, intertidal mollusks, tortoises, birds, small and large mammals. Such prey diversity has also been described for Italy and Israel (Stiner, 1994; Stiner
et al., 1999) and was probably the rule across the heterogeneous landscapes of the Mediterranean Basin.
The Gibraltar data indicate that the onset of colder conditions towards the end of OIS
3 signified massive environmental changes (Finlayson et al., in prep.) with the replacement
of open woodland by dense forests of Mediterranean montane pines (Pinus nigra/sylvestris).
At the same time the Mediterranean montane vegetation inland was being replaced by arid
steppe vegetation (Carrión, 1992a). Finlayson et al. (in prep.) have shown how such changes
would have been accompanied by a significant reduction of biomass which was only partly
compensated by the arrival of high latitude marine mammals and birds in response to
southward shifts in the polar front (Ruddiman and McIntyre, 1981). The major implication
of this environmental transformation is the disruption of the Neanderthal seasonal activity cycle in a very short time that would have stressed their populations beyond recovery
especially if associated with the arrival of Modern Humans from the north (Finlayson et al.,
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in prep.). Finlayson (in prep.) has shown, however, that the demise of the Neanderthals
could be explained without recourse to competition from Modern Humans.
Acknowledgements
We thank the following funding bodies for support: National Geographic Society,
British Academy, Government of Gibraltar, Society of Antiquaries, NERC, Oxford Brookes
University. Thanks are due to Robert Hedges and the staff of the Oxford Radiocarbon
Accelerator Unit for their work in producing AMS radiocarbon dates. Figure 2 is based on
a survey by José Aguilera, Julio Aguilera, Gloria Bonet, M.Carmen Lora, Antonio Santiago,
J. J. Mateos and J. M. Galafate.
*
The Gibraltar Museum • 18-20 Bomb House Lane • P.O. Box 939 • Gibraltar.
**
Department of Anthropology • Oxford Brookes University • Headington • Oxford OX3 0BP • UK.
*** Department of Paleontology • Natural History Museum • Cromwell Road • London SW7 5BD • UK
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